Construct redundancy within the Five-Factor Model as measured by the NEO PI-R: Implications for emotional intelligence and incremental coherence

Self-report measures of emotional intelligence (EI) have been criticized for not being associated with unique validity, independently of comprehensive measures of personality such as the NEO PI-R. In this investigation, the issue of unique validity was re-directed at personality as measured by the facets of the NEO PI-R. Specifically, based on three samples, the personality facet of Depression within the NEO PI-R was found to be so substantially predicted by ten other NEO PI-R facets as to suggest construct redundancy within the NEO PI-R (i.e., R = .93, R = .99, R = .96). Because mixed-models of EI tend to be associated with clearer construct boundaries than personality, it is suggested that EI may be associated with some scientific utility (i.e., ‘incremental coherence’), even in the total absence of any empirically demonstrable unique validity.